


Perfect Storms

by GhostQueen (orphan_account)



Series: Gone Was Any Trace of You [1]
Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Healthy Relationships, Hopeful Ending, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Drug Addiction, Jason Blossom is a dick, Jason is too but irrelevant bc he's an asshole, Jughead Jones is Not Asexual, Jughead is Bi here, M/M, Past Relationship(s), Please Don't Hate Me, Pre-Bughead, Pre-Relationship, Set During 1x03, Unhealthy Relationships, but mostly - Freeform, in this fic - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-17
Updated: 2017-03-17
Packaged: 2018-10-06 09:48:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,617
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10331918
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/GhostQueen
Summary: The Shame Book contained Polly’s name parallel to Jason’s.Betty dealt with this in her own demoralized way.Cheryl was left wondering if she even knew her brother at all.That wasn’t the only name that would shock them tonight, however.(aka. another "Jughead's name is in the book" fic)





	

**Author's Note:**

> the title is based off taylor swift lyrics lmao
> 
> also sorry i am made of angst™
> 
> also also i have the nickname jughead at school, because i have his hair and now i have his beanie. irrelevant, but now you know.
> 
> i have a tumblr too if you're interested
> 
> your-average-dork.tumblr.com

The group of five stood gathered around the book, basking in the new information. 

 

The Shame Book contained Polly’s name parallel to Jason’s. Betty dealt with this in her own demoralized way. Cheryl was left wondering if she even knew her brother at all.

 

That wasn’t the only name that would shock them tonight, however.

 

As Veronica snapped a picture, Ethel and Kevin continued to flip through the pages, scanning for himself, to see if he was just a conquest for Moose. Instead, he found something considerably detrimental as his eyes stopped and froze over one name.

 

When there was a lull in the conversation, Kevin, without looking up, hesitantly spoke up, “Betty, you really should see this,” By then, Veronica’s eyes were glued to the book as well.

 

Betty let out an infuriated sigh, still pacing the room, “Kevin, I don’t care how many times Polly is in there, I hate that she’s there at all!” 

 

Kevin merely rolled his eyes at her dramatized behavior, “Betty, just get over here.”

 

She reluctantly complied and, once she saw, was as dumbfounded as the rest of them.

 

_Jason | 4 |  Jughead (Fag Freak bonus +6) (8)_

 

The five existed in silence for a moment. Then, suddenly, Betty snatched the book out of Ethel’s hands and stomped out of the building, Veronica and Kevin hot on her trail, calling out after her.

 

After finally losing her friends, Betty stayed up all night writing her exposé, struggling to keep her thoughts away from Jughead and the inevitable confrontation to come. 

 

She knew that Jug had hit a rough patch in his life, but what happened that allowed him to throw himself into Jason’s arms, and bed? Polly had never mentioned anything like that before, so begs the question: did she know? Did Jughead know Jason was cheating on Polly with him? Were they both just pawns in Jason’s rigged game of chess? 

 

There were so many questions brought on by this recent knowledge, and no answers for any of them. 

 

If she wanted to know the truth, she would have to go directly to the source. 

 

That was a conversation she wasn’t looking forward to.

 

-

 

The next morning, there were visible bags underneath her eyes, but at least her exposé was done. 

 

All she had to do was print it. 

 

But she couldn’t. At least not yet, not until she had closure on the questions that plagued her mind, refusing to let her utilize all of her focus on the article.

 

She and Jughead had decided that it would be best to meet before school so they could print the paper together and correct any last minute mistakes. It was easier said than done, given the impending conversation. 

 

Betty got to the Blue and Gold office early, waiting for Jughead on the couch. He was always there before her, so he would know she meant business. 

 

He walked in, slightly taken back by her presence, and maybe her appearance, she probably looked as exhausted as she felt, but the nerves in her system were enough to keep her going. 

 

He slowly closed the door and hesitantly approached her. She distantly noticed that his hair was wet, but that wasn’t what they were here to talk about.

 

Her current expression was most likely a mesh of concern and confusion and her voice, no doubt, conveyed the same emotions as she spoke, “Juggie…” she trailed, unsure how to start the conversation even though she’s had all night to think about it, “We need to talk about something.” 

 

He looked apprehensive, like he was afraid that she knew something that she shouldn’t have, and, in a way, she did. 

 

Jughead sat next to her, looking everywhere but her, trying to keep his composure, “What do we need to talk about?” He had to have known, but seemed to be prolonging this as long as possible. 

 

“I think you know, Jug. It’s about Jason,” His micro-expressions, despite his overall calm exterior, betrayed shock and a little relief, which made her wonder if there was something else they should be talking about as well, but she supposed that was a conversation for another day. 

 

He still wasn’t looking at her directly, but he did glance in her direction a few times before sighing, “What do you want to know?” He sounded resigned, like he really didn’t want to be talking about this, but Betty wasn’t going to give up that easily. 

 

She took a deep breath, looking away, before making eye contact with him, “Were..,” she paused, trying to figure out how to phrase the question, “Were you and Jason together? While he and Polly were together? Did you know? Did she know?”

 

He laughed humorlessly, “Woah, Betty, that’s a lot of questions, loaded ones too. Let’s take them one at a time.”

 

She nodded while he looked off, contemplative, as if deciding what exactly to tell her.

 

He sighed, “Jason and I… were together. For a while, actually, but this was all before he started dating Polly,” He paused, brow furrowed, eyes flooded with regret, “and, _god_ , did I try to warn her about him.” 

 

Betty blinked, trying to process his answer, “Is this why you distanced yourself from us last year? Because of him? And why did you try to warn her? What did he do?” In the process of getting answers, she was only given more questions. 

 

He bit his lip and met her eyes before glancing away again, “Yeah, he was part of the reason the rest is a bit tricker to explain,” he started tapping against his leg nervously.

 

In a moment of valor, she grabbed his hand, intertwining their fingers, and offered him an  expression of understanding. He tensed up momentarily, before relaxing into her touch, returning her gesture with a small, unsure smile.

 

He held eye contact for a moment, “I’ll tell you the rest of my reasoning later, but for now, let’s just deal with the issue at hand,” his hand started shaking and Betty squeezed his hand in reassurance.

 

He took a shaky breath and started answering her myriad of questions, “Jason he-he was your average closet case, we were kind of like Moose and Kevin, but we-it was more than that. I guess I always knew that I was just another notch in his bedpost, someone he just dragged along for convenience…” he trailed off in remembrance, lost in the memories. 

 

Even though he kept speaking, his eyes were far off, lost, “I was too vulnerable, too naive at the time. I thought I could fix him and we could build something that was more than just physical attraction. For a while, I believed that he actually loved me. I know it was stupid to think that, but I couldn’t help myself, and I fell. He used me and I ended up as just another story in his book,” He studied his shoes, suddenly ashamed of himself.

 

Betty wanted to interject, tell him that he had nothing to be ashamed of, but she didn’t want to stop him, or he may never finish his story, so she held her tongue. 

 

Shaking his head, he pulled away his hand from her grasp, and cradled his face, “ _God,_ I was so stupid! He broke up with me after I told him I wouldn’t get him any drugs. That’s all he was after. He didn’t want me, he wanted my father’s drug connection,” also a conversation for another day.

 

After taking a few deep breaths, he laid his hands on his knees. Betty laid her hand over his, saying nothing, but motioning for him to continue.

 

He allowed himself a thoughtful smile, “But Polly? She went after him despite my warnings about him. She thought she could change him. And she did, but he changed her just as much. They fit together in this idiosyncratic, jagged way. He may have destroyed me, but they destroyed each other while simultaneously fixing each other. They formed this sort of… Franken-relationship. In a twisted sense, they were perfect for each other.”

 

“One day, they decided to set themselves straight. I don’t know what caused it, but they did, or at least they tried. I only know, because despite wanting nothing to do with me anymore, I could read Jason like a book and I could see myself in Polly in how he affected her.”

He jerked away from Betty, standing up and facing away from her, “There is that what you wanted to know? Are you happy now? How do you even know about this?” She could tell tears were welling up in his eyes.

 

She turned him around and looked him in the eyes, “What Jason did to you and Polly was awful and if he were alive, I’d deck him,” he let out an involuntary laugh, “Thank you, Jughead, for trusting me with this, but you should know that your name was in the shame book the football players kept. That’s how I know about this.”

 

Jughead gave a bitter scoff, “Of course it was. I wouldn’t put it past that asshole,” he emitted an equally bitter snigger, “I guess that explains Reggie’s necrophilia joke. I might have actually laughed, because I am, in fact, a self-deprecating asshole, if he actually knew the word. But alas, he did not.”

 

They fell into a comfortable silence. He suddenly spoke up again, “Betty…” He was at a loss for words, so he just hugged her as tight as he could and mumbled into the crook of her neck, a crack in his voice, “Thank you.”

 

She smiled into his shoulder. Everything was going to be alright. Maybe not right now, but eventually. 

 

**Author's Note:**

> btw highkey tempted to write a prequel with jason and jughead  
> so if you want that leave a comment or kudos or something man  
> i just want to see if there's any interest for it
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> (but tbh might just write it anyway)


End file.
